Chapter 260: Chapter 259: Snow Mountain Searching for Friends

Su Zhining’s chest surged with anger, and she suddenly turned her head, glaring at Xu Ying with murder in her eyes: “Station Chief Xu! Why didn’t you keep an eye on this bandit fox?!”

Xu Ying was still eating, and upon hearing Su Zhining’s scream, she poked her head out of the wooden house, looking bewildered: “Huh? What’s happening?”

The next second, her gaze landed on the Fox Director—it was elegantly perched on the six-figure “Royal Fox Toilet.” It even flicked its tail leisurely, displaying a calm demeanor as if declaring, “This bowl is now commandeered.”

Xu Ying: “…”

I told you earlier to put the bowl away and you didn’t listen, now you’re here preaching again.

Xu Ying shook her head, her tone regretful: “Didn’t Miss Su just say in the house that if the bowl breaks, it’s just twenty thousand yuan for a sound? Now the bowl isn’t even broken, why are you getting so worked up and giving me trouble.”

Su Zhining was struck by her own boomerang and her face flushed: “It’s a twenty thousand yuan item after all. It just took my bowl to use as a toilet without my consent, isn’t that too much?”

“It’s all because you didn’t manage it well.”

Xu Ying suddenly put on a serious face, pulled out her work ID, and waved it around: “Miss Su, I’m not the owner of this Tibetan Fox. This is a state-protected secondary animal, and I’m just its pooper scooper for hire.”

She paused for two seconds, then looked sincerely at Su Zhining, her tone earnest: “Why don’t… you list it on Zhuanzhuan and sell it for cash?”

The livestream chat exploded with laughter:

[How much did Zhuanzhuan second-hand trading platform pay for the ad? I’m offering double with Xianyu!]

[Xiao Shu, what hellish advice! Isn’t that encouraging someone to go to jail?]

[“The Out-of-Law Mad Fox” — Privileges of a National Second-Class Protected Animal!]

[Garlic Bird Garlic Bird, you can’t win against it~]

[Xu Ying: What can I do? I’m just a humble caretaker (shrugs)]

[Suggest Su Zhining file a lawsuit, take it to the Wild Animal Court, but the judge might be a Tibetan Fox (dog head emoji)]

Su Zhining: “…”

She looked down at her own rice bowl, then at the Fox Director’s square face filled with defiance, and could only swallow this unfairness silently.

*

After the meal at the site of the former scientific expedition team.

The deputy director raised a loudspeaker, and his voice was particularly clear in the biting mountain wind: “Welcome to West Mountain Snow Mountain! What does everyone first think of when it comes to Snow Mountain? That’s right, the precious Snow Lotus!”

He glanced around the crowd and continued: “The Snow Lotus is known as the ’Snow Mountain Elf,’ and it takes five to eight years of long growth to bloom. Due to its precious medicinal value and fragile ecological environment, it is listed as a national second-class protected plant.”

“And today, you will complete an unprecedented task with the little animal partners—artificially cultivating Snow Lotus!”

The livestream chat buzzed with excitement:

[Oh my! Snow Lotus can be artificially grown too?]

[With Little Xu Station Chief around, nothing is impossible!]

[Looking forward to seeing Snow Mountain full of Snow Lotus!]

[Even though it takes seven to eight years, it’s definitely worth the wait!]

The deputy director gave a mysterious smile: “The first task is called ’Snow Mountain Romance.’ Our expert team has arranged special ’teammates’ in the best planting areas. The five guests need to find them, win their trust, and bring them to Little Xu Station Chief.”

Xu Ying received a wing-shaped sticker from the staff and gently stuck it on her chest.

She added: “The little animals will give each guest ’impression scores,’ which can be exchanged for special props. More importantly—”

Xu Ying paused, “For every task completed, twenty thousand yuan of rescue funds will be unlocked for the Snow Mountain Animal Rescue Fund!”

“This project is sponsored by…”

Xu Ying finished reading a long list of sponsor names in one breath.

The program team is working with the authorities to build a large Snow Mountain Animal Rescue Station, with Xu Ying as the general director.

The chat went lively again:

[This show’s concept is brilliant! An animal version of “If You Are the One”?]

[Will the little animals rate them like turning off lights if they don’t like them?]

[They even give the animals appearance fees? Twenty thousand bucks!]

[I suddenly want to be reincarnated as a Snow Mountain little animal…]

[Wake up, we’re just worker bees!]

Xu Ying raised the task card: “Now, let’s set off to the three-thousand meter-high camp!”

Su Zhining crossed her arms and looked around: “How do we get up there?”

The deputy director eagerly answered: “It’s a Snow Mountain tourist specialty project, horse-drawn sleigh!”

At the Snow Mountain resort, horse-drawn sleigh is a legitimate tourist attraction. The local herders also increase their income through horse-drawn sleighs; in the winter, their supplies and forage are transported this way, which is a part of traditional pastoral life.

A staff member came running out of breath: “Director! There’s a problem! The horses responsible for pulling the sleigh have gone on strike, they refuse to move no matter what!”

The chat exploded:

[Even the horses understand labor rights now!]

[I can’t even compare to livestock…]

[Horses: Today’s job involves celebrities, more pay!]

After confirming the situation, the vice director reluctantly put down the walkie-talkie: “Everyone, the horse team is on strike in protest, so we have to hike up the mountain ourselves.” He mustered up some energy and gave a cheer-up gesture, “It’ll only take forty minutes, and we can enjoy the snowy scenery along the way!”

Before the words even left his mouth, Lu Jinyu was already smirking.

“I was just gonna have my snowmobile airlifted over for some fun…”

He deliberately emphasized the words “airlifted,” surveying the crowd, “didn’t expect that my BRP snowmobile would come in handy at a critical moment.”

As Lu Jinyu was about to reach for his keys, he realized his pockets were empty. Then he remembered he had tossed the keys to Xu Ying. He turned his gaze to her, his voice a little awkward: “Little Xu Station Chief, can I have my snowmobile keys back?”

Xu Ying casually tossed the keys back with a flick of the wrist, effortlessly like throwing a frisbee.

Su Zhining crossed her arms and sneered: “Oh, didn’t you say ’use it freely’ earlier?” She tapped Lu Jinyu’s chest with her rhinestone-studded fingernails, “A man’s words—”

“The back seat can still hold another person.”

Lu Jinyu suavely got on the snowmobile, helmet tucked under his arm, and his eyes under the fringe looked directly at Xu Ying, curving his lips into a smile: “Shall I take you?”

The chat from Lu Jinyu’s fans blew up instantly:

[Ahhh hubby, keep that back seat for me!]

[Xu Ying don’t agree, it’ll break my heart!!]

[What kind of idol drama is this, really?!]

Xu Ying instinctively took half a step back, her snow boots crunching on the packed snow.

If she got on Lu Jinyu’s snowmobile, by tomorrow, even the littlest creatures on the Snow Mountain would be lining up to mock her.

Just as she was about to refuse, the distant snow line suddenly roared with deafening engine sounds.

Six jet-black snowmobiles ripped through the vast snow curtain like a torrent of steel, and the lead rider performed a beautiful drift, kicking up a sky full of snow mist.

When the ice crystals dissipated, the lead rider removed the helmet, revealing a fringe still damp from the fast ride, and the exhaled white breath blurred those sharp eyes.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep